Dallas Top Model Discovers Every Rose Has Its Thorn

Our fair Ambreal got the cut this week … the haircut, that is. On the beloved makeover episode of America’s Next Top Model, some girls got ye ol’ bottle blonde, some got extensions, and one girl got flat-out buzzed. Like, with barber’s clippers. Dallas gal Ambreal, however, got her short 'do cropped to a sleek, cheekbone-defining pixie that transformed her from “sure, she’s purty” to high-fashion hot-damn.

Tyra Banks predicted that “an elegant woman can handle almost no hair.” Ambreal was into it. “It's time for change, and I'm down with this change … I'm already thinking about poses and how I can work my face,” she beamed.

Later, the photo shoot challenge called for the girls to commune with nature and become their assigned plants and flowers. Ambreal was a red rose. (Insert collective “Awww” here.) But things weren’t all roses for our fair lady. While complimented by Mr. Jay on the set for her body language and physical posing ("Can we just talk about the arched foot? You are wearing me out. It's gorgeous"), she failed to deliver what we refer to in my house as “the face.” Jay went on to tell her that she needed to bring the same elegance and grace to her face that she had mastered in her positioning. And he was right.

After being critiqued for “too corporate” an outfit, the panel took on Ambreal’s photographic offerings. She was given props by judge Nigel Barker for her bod (“You've remembered that roses have thorns." Uh, right. That’s totally what she was going for.) But Tyra called her face "dead." Yeah, dead.

Not to worry, however. There were at least three other girls that absolutely bombed, so Ambreal was safe. After snapping at Twiggy for the third week in a row, prickly, defensive Yaley Victoria was “pruned” from the other flowers, proving that you don’t get huffy with supermodel Tyra Banks and you certainly don’t snap at a 1960s icon.

Preview: Next week doesn’t bode well for our girl A. Her fear of heights is pretty much the only thing on the teaser … oh, and her tears … and her freak-out. Fingers crossed she looks “fierce” when frightened. --Merritt Martin